Lakers star Kobe Bryant is surrounded by reporters at the team's practice facility in El Segundo. (US PRESSWIRE)

You can’t blame Kobe Bryant for looking and feeling a little surly these days.

On the eve of training camp and the start of the 2011 free agency period, the Lakers thought they had All-Star point guard Chris Paul in a three-team deal. Just hours after the CP3 trade began circulating, commissioner David Stern nixed the trade citing the NBA-owned New Orleans Hornets were not getting enough in return.

Days after the Paul trade fell apart, the Lakers moved popular teammate Lamar Odom, the reigning Sixth Man of the Year, to the defending champion Dallas Mavericks. How did Bryant react to the news? He said “I hope management knows what they’re doing!” Not exactly a ringing endorsement for general manager Mitch Kupchak and team executive Jim Buss.

Then, on Wednesday, the Clippers – the junior varsity team of Staples Center – landed the coveted Paul, and the Twitterverse started blowing up with plenty of chatter on how the Clippers have now surpassed the Lakers as the No. 1 in Los Angeles.

Two days later, on a very windy Friday afternoon in Southern California, TMZ reported that Kobe’s wife, Vanessa, filed for divorce citing “irreconcilable differences” and asked for joint custody of the couple’s two daughters. TMZ said Vanessa is ending the 10-year marriage because Kobe has been unfaithful.

Talk about a rough last 48 hours for the Black Mamba! No wonder he left Friday’s practice without speaking to the media and was extra terse with reporters on Thursday when he was asked about the CP3 deal to the crosstown rival Clippers.

Despite all the trouble in Lakerland, Kobe Bryant remains focused on the task at hand, which is to chase his sixth NBA championship ring and a 17th title to the Lakers franchise.

Bryant reportedly looks great in practice and his troublesome knee seems to be healing well. Bryant still has 7-footers Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum to lean on offensively and defensively, and he still has good friend Derek Fisher by his side when things get crazy in the locker room. Newly acquired forward Josh McRoberts is a terrific athlete who will add energy and punch off the bench, and could start on occasion should Bynum or Gasol gets hurt. And don’t think for one second that the Lakers are done wheeling and dealing. They are still in play to obtain All-Star center Dwight Howard and they are still in the market for a point guard.

There are lots of questions left to be answered for the Lakers, including how the team will function without Phil Jackson’s trusty triangle offense and how long it will take them to trust first-year head coach Mike Brown. But one thing is for certain, Kobe Bryant is still one of the best players in the league and he will never allow the Lakers to play second-fiddle to anyone, especially the Clippers.

Kobe will file all the negativity surrounding his life and use them as motivation. Don’t ever count out Kobe Bryant and the Lakers.

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

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Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum (right) goes up for a shot against Dallas Mavericks center Tyson Chandler. Bynum and the Lakers were swept by Chandler and the Mavericks in the second round of the Western Conference playoffs. (US PRESSWIRE)

Two words come to mind after the Lakers were swept by the Mavericks in the 2011 Western Conference semifinal series: heartless and classless.

The Lakers, the two-time defending champions and the model franchise for the past three decades in the NBA, did not display the heart of champion nor the poise of a champion in Game 4 at Dallas. The Mavericks eliminated the Lakers in spectacular fashion, dropping seemingly endless 3-pointers in a 122-86 win, ending the Lakers’ reign and sending Phil Jackson into early retirement.

What compounded the embarrassment was the way the Lakers reacted in the fourth quarter. With the game out of reach and with just nine minutes to play, Lakers forward Lamar Odom gave Mavs All-Star Dirk Nowitzki a hard shoulder check 23 feet from the basket. Odom’s flagrant foul resulted an ejection.

But that wasn’t enough. Moments later, Lakers center Andrew Bynum joined Odom in the locker room after he intentionally threw an elbow to the ribs of J.J. Barea as Barea drove to the basket, sending the Mavs guard to the floor hard. It was a dangerous move that could have ended Barea’s season. Mike Tirico called it “bushleague,” and Hubie Brown, one of the most respected men in the game, said “amen” to Tirico’s claim. It was a despicable act by a player who totally lost his cool and didn’t know how to accept defeat. It’s a loser’s mentality.

The cheap shots did not sit well with the Maverick, as well Laker legend Magic Johnson. Johnson said, “In Game 4, the Los Angeles Lakers embarrassed the organization by getting blown out by the Dallas Mavericks. Classless acts on physical and hard fouls by Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum. That should have never happened. You have to show class when you win, and you have to show class when you lose. And the Lakers did not show class in Game 4.”

Two games prior to Game 4, Ron Artest delivered a forearm shot to Barea’s head during the final moments of a Laker loss at Staples Center. It resulted in a one-game suspension for Artest, as he had to sit out Game 3.

Those three incidents have no place in basketball. Magic is completely right in saying that the Lakers were classless in defeat, which is a shame because it showed poor sportsmanship from all three players involved. There’s a different between hard fouls in the heat of the moment during a series when the games are still within reach, and cheap shots. Those were clearly cheap shots. There are unacceptable and it shows the true character of a person. It’s easy to ride the wave of emotion when things are going well, but it’s hard to swallow a bitter defeat. However, losing doesn’t give anyone the green light to start get violent against the competition.

Odom said he did what he did because he was embarrassed. Bynum said he wasn’t disappointed in himself for nearly sending Barea to the hospital. Well, if Bynum is not disappointed in himself then it is extremely disappointing to hear his response.

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LeBron James told reporters on Friday that he wouldn’t mind seeing less teams in the NBA, a stance that goes against the players’ union. Union president Derek Fisher just so happens to be on the other side of the court today when the Los Angeles Lakers host LeBron and his BFF Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat at Staples Center in the marquee game of the NBA’s Christmas Day schedule.

Fisher told ESPN News’ Sara Walsh on Friday, “I’m going to be real. Other than just going out and playing against a good team, it’s not necessarily personal. Of course, I want a win against the Heat on Christmas Day. That’s the best gift I can give myself.”

Things just got more interesting in the budding rivalry between the Lakers and the Heat.

Fisher is one of the more politically correct people in the league, so he’s not going to drag this brewing issue to the media. However, don’t be surprised if Fisher sends LeBron a little message in the form of a forearm to the chest. Remember the Luis Scola play? Things could get a little testy. Here’s a look at the matchups:

Dwyane Wade could be matched up against Kobe Bryant for much of today's highly anticipated contest. (GETTY IMAGES)

GUARDS: Other than Dwyane Wade, the Heat really don’t have much while the Lakers have a wealth of experience in the backcourt with Kobe Bryant, Derek Fisher, Steve Blake and Shannon Brown. The only way this position matchup evens out is if Carlos Arroyo or Mario Chalmers has a career game – which is probably not going to happen. It will be interesting to see if Wade guards Kobe for the majority of the game. If he does, Wade’s offense will suffer a little bit because he’ll have to waste a lot of energy on defense. If he doesn’t, then his buddy LeBron will likely draw the assignment, but that would mean Wade would have to guard Ron Artest which is no walk in the park either. EDGE: LAKERS

FORWARDS: LeBron James will likely face Ron Artest in a head-to-head showdown worth the price of admission. Artest may be the only player in the league who can dislodge LeBron off the box, and the Lakers don’t have to send an extra defender toward LeBron because Artest can play him straight up. The Chris Bosh-Lamar Odom matchup is an interesting one. Both are lefties and both are streak shooters. Against any other team, Artest and Odom should prevail. But against a Heat squad with two All-Star forwards, the Lakers will have their hands full. EDGE: HEAT

CENTER: The Heat may have The Big Three but the Lakers have The Hollywood Hills in Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum. Gasol will start the game, but expect Andrew Bynum to have a major impact in the game off the bench. Outside of Zydrunas Ilgauskas, the Heat don’t have another 7-footer who can bother The Hills. Gasol and Bynum are matchup nightmares for 29 teams in the league, and the Lakers are nearly unbeatable when both are healthy. The Heat will be at a severe disadvantage. EDGE: LAKERS

COACHING: Erik Spoelstra is one of young, bright coaches in the league but, let’s get real, he’s facing a living legend in Lakers mastermind Phil Jackson. End of story. EDGE: LAKERS

PREDICTION: LeBron and D-Wade need to be extra special for the Heat to have a chance, while the Lakers just need to play their normal game to take control of the game. Lakers win, 99-93.

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Lakers center Andrew Bynum played only 16 minutes in Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals and told Phil Jackson that he felt a little tightness in the back of his right leg, which made it difficult for him to run up and down the court.

“He wasn’t able to move fluidly in the second half,” Jackson said. “He just said ‘Take me out, I can’t run.’ He had some swelling in the back of his leg, and we’ll have to work on that, ice it down and control that.”

Jackson added: “Of course it concerns us. Both teams are playing without players at this time. You just have to gut it through.”

Bynum, 22, has been playing with a torn meniscus in his right knee since the first round and he re-aggravated the injury in Game 3 of The Finals and has been limited since. He is averaging 9.6 points per game in the series.

The 7-foot center started Game 6 but scored just two points, was 1-for-4 from the field and had just four rebounds. He will be re-evaluated Wednesday, but is expected to play in Game 7.

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Kendrick Perkins is the anchor of the Boston Celtics and without him the Celtics sunk like the Titanic.

Seven minutes into Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals, the Celtics lost their starting center when he came down awkwardly on his right knee while trying to grab an offensive rebound away from Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum. Perkins fell to the floor and immediately pointed his right knee and called for the Boston medical staff.

He was helped off the court and taken to the locker room, and did not return. The initial report is that he tore two ligaments on his knee and is out for Game 7. He was seen leaving the arena on his own power, but definitely was favoring the knee.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers said not having the 6-10, 280-pound Perkins puts the Celtics are at a huge disadvantage against the bigger and taller Lakers. “He’s one of our guys that gives us great spirit. He gives us a lot of toughness and gives us size. I hope he can play. It’ll be tough if he can’t. Somebody else is going to have to step forward. He cleans the paint up. Not having him there made the Lakers awfully long.”

Kendrick Perkins lays on the floor after injuring his right knee in the first quarter of Game 6. (NBAE/GETTY IMAGES)

Without Perkins manning the middle and cleaning up Boston’s bricks, the Celtics were manhandled, 52-39, on the boards and the Lakers dominated the game, 89-67, Tuesday night.

Rivers added that not having Perkins in the lineup allowed the Lakers to rest Bynum, who is nursing a torn meniscus in his right knee. The Lakers were able to tread water when their starting 7-foot center was on the bench. The Celtics, on the other hand, absolutely drowned when their starting center was taken out of the game.

You could sense that as soon as Perkins left the game, the Celtics were not the same team. In fact, seeing Perkins getting helped off the court really killed Boston’s spirit.

“I think we were a little focused on when Perk was going to come back instead of continuing to play. As soon as halftime came we all ran to the training room to see if he was OK. Our energy went down for a little bit, but for the most part it’s not an excuse. We just didn’t have it,” said Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo, who suffered a gash on his chin after running into Ron Artest’s elbow in the second half.

“Perk is our enforcer. He’s the biggest body we have on Bynum. He cleans the paint up for us. He does a lot of the intangibles. He’s a great shot-blocker, rebounder and he’s the anchor of our defense.”

Former Celtic Kevin McHale, who was at Game 6 covering the game for NBATV, said Perkins is one of the toughest players in the league and for him to sit this one out shows the seriousness of the injury. “Kendrick’s got a fairly severe knee injury and when you do something like that the swelling would be hard for them to eliminate. Believe me, when you have an injury like that, you go to bed thinking ‘You know Coach, I don’t feel that bad.’ Then you wake up the next morning and you put that first step in and it’s like someone hit you with a sledge hammer.”

The Celtics say they are still confident they can win the series even without their best post defender, but realistically their NBA title hopes may have disappeared when Perkins’ knee gave out.

But one thing is for sure, they’re not going to use Perkins’ injury as an excuse.

“Perk brings rebounding and defense to the game, and his toughness so you lose that. But that’s not an excuse,” said Celtics captain Paul Pierce. “We’re a mentally tough team. We’ve had injuries all year, and we know how to win when guys go down.”

Video courtesy of NBA.com

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Andrew Bynum is expected to have his ailing right knee examined today and his status for Game 5 is uncertain.

Bynum has been playing with a torn meniscus since the first round of the 2010 NBA playoffs, but he reaggravated the injury in Game 3 of the NBA Finals. Lakers officials say there is swelling in the knee and Bynum has experienced some discomfort. He played just 12 minutes in Game 4 and scored just two points.

“I haven’t got any expectations. I don’t know what his condition is today,” Jackson said at his Friday morning news conference.

Jackson inserted Bynum in the starting lineup last night, but opted for Lamar Odom in the second half as Bynum received extra treatment at halftime. But when he returned, he was ineffective and appeared limited in his movement.

Not having Bynum for much of Game 4 really compromised the Lakers’ interior  defense as the Celtics outrebounded the Lakers, 41-34, and dominated them, 54-34, in points in the paint.

“They miss him,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said of the Lakers’ 7-foot center. “He’s got great size and length. We attacked the paint and obvioulsy he wasn’t there. When he’s not on the floor there’s a big difference.”

Because Game 5 is not until Sunday, the Lakers will use these next two days to evaluate Bynum’s injury before making a decision on his playing status. Though it was a little bit of a struggle to get through Game 4 Jackson said Bynum still had an impact in the game.

“Even with him dragging the leg around a little bit, he still helped us in situations last night. Andrew still has the length and the strength to capture rebounds.

“We’ll use him if he’s available and able. But we’re certainly not going to put him in situations that’s going to hurt himself or the team.”

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Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson revealed on Sunday night that he is considering sitting center Andrew Bynum for Game 4 to rest his ailing right knee.

The Lakers have a 2-1 edge in the Western Conference finals against the Phoenix Suns and Game 5 is on Thursday in Los Angeles so that would give Bynum three full days of not putting any weight on his right knee, which has a torn meniscus.

Bynum told Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com that he prefers to play because he’s not doing more damage to the knee. But Jackson is more concerned about how Bynum’s injury is impacting the Lakers, especially on the defensive end.

“I’ll talk to him and see what his suggestion is and how he feels about it, ” Jackson said of Bynum, who had two points, two rebounds and four personal fouls in a little over seven minutes in Game 3, won by the Suns 118-109.

“I think that he was ineffective tonight. There’s some things that got by him. He had one nice move in the post. Defensively, I thought he was a little bit late.”

Amare Stoudemire punished the Lakers defense with a series-high 42 points, aided by 14 free throws on 18 attempts. But Stoudemire scoring 40 points is not that surprising. What was surprising was that Robin Lopez made eight of 10 shots from the field and scored 20 points. If Bynum were healthy, Lopez wouldn’t have 20 points. Heck, he may not even have more than six.

Bynum doesn’t need to score to have an impact in the game. They have Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol for that. What Bynum brings to the floor is size and length on defense, which discourage players, such as Stoudemire, from driving to the basket. With Bynum and Gasol in the backline, the Lakers possess two 7-footers with extremely long wingspans and perimeter defenders such as Ron Artest can apply more pressure on the opposition and not worry about getting beat to the basket.

“Obviously, he’s been a key player all year. He can bring a lot to the table defensively and offensively,” Gasol said of his teammate. “He’s a big presence for us. We don’t know how much that knee is a factor. Of course, I would like for him to play more, and provide more, and help us.”

The Lakers are good enough to advance past the Suns without Bynum, but they will need him in the NBA Finals. And that’s the big picture Jackson and the Lakers are looking at.

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With one thunderous dunk, Andrew Bynum served notice to Oklahoma City and the rest of the league that his strained Achilles’ tendon is doing just fine.

Bynum posterized Nenad Krstic in the first half of Game 1 in the Lakers’ first-round series against Oklahoma City, highlighting a strong start for the defending world champions that saw them take a 27-13 lead in the first quarter.

“The more I keep playing with this aggressive nature, I think I’m gonna get better at it and my teammates will trust me even more with the basketball,” said Bynum, who scored nine of his 13 points in the first quarter. He finished with 12 rebounds and blocked four shots, but altered several more, in 31 minutes to power the Lakers to an 87-79 victory.

The extended minutes on the floor was not the plan going in, but Bynum said he felt good despite playing in his first game since March 19 when he strained his Achilles’ tendon.

“I think with treatment in the morning, I think I’ll be OK. I felt a couple of little twinges but nothing too serious,” Bynum told reporters. “But with more treatment and rest as much as I can between games I think I’ll be OK.”

The Lakers are certainly glad to have Bynum back after being sidelined for a month. His absence forced Lamar Odom into the starting lineup which hurt the Lakers bench, and Pau Gasol had to slide over to the center position. But the biggest thing the Lakers missed while Bynum was sideline was his defense.

Bynum is the anchor of Phil Jackson’s defense scheme. His length discourages opponents from driving to the basket and negates any one-on-one post ups from opposing centers.

And when Bynum is paired with Gasol, the Lakers have two excellent post players on offense, and defensively it is almost impossible to get easy baskets against the two 7-footers. It’s like having two Magic Mountain theme parks blocking the basket. 

“Me playing the 4 and Andrew being in there gives us good balance,” said Gasol, who had 19 points, 13 rebounds and three blocked shots against the Thunder.

If the Lakers are to repeat as NBA champs, they are going to need a healthy Andrew Bynum, and his value will increase with each round.

He’ll play a huge role in the conference semifinals with a potential matchup against Nene and the Denver Nuggets, and then he’ll be a big factor in the conference finals with a potential matchup against either Dallas or San Antonio. And should the Lakers reach the NBA Finals, Bynum will go head-to-head with either Cleveland’s Shaquille O’Neal or Orlando’s Dwight Howard.

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Lakers center Andrew Bynum has played just 33 minutes and taken 12 shots in the first two games of the Western Conference finals.

Lately, I cannot tell the difference between Andrew Bynum and DJ Mbenga, which is not good for the Los Angeles Lakers.

For a guy who was supposed to be the last piece to the Lakers’ championship puzzle, Bynum has turned into Mr. Irrelevant in this year’s playoffs. He has morphed into Andrew Mbenga.

Bynum, a 7-footer with a boatload of talent but a history of serious knee injuries, has been in and out of the starting lineup, and his body language is comparable to a 6-year-old who had just been denied an extra 10 minutes of playtime and told not to play on the grass area.

Bynum’s presence in the low post is paramount to the Lakers’ championship aspirations. Without him, the Lakers can get to the NBA Finals. With him, the Lakers can win an NBA championship. He cannot be a secondary player. He needs to be front and center.

During the Utah series, Lakers Coach Phil Jackson basically sent a loud and clear message to his 21-year-old pupil that the group is moving on with or without him, benching the big man and re-inserting Lamar Odom in the starting lineup.

His teammates, namely Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol, know how important Bynum is to the Lakers and have tried their best to throw words of encouragement to keep him from totally falling into an abyss. He had his moments in the Houston series, including a 14-point, six-rebound performance in Game 7. But for whatever reason, he just could not stay on the court – whether it’s his own doing or Jackson’s lack of patience.

His malaise has extended through the Western Conference finals. In two games against the Denver Nuggets, he is averaging 7.5 points and 4.0 rebounds in 33 minutes, and is 6-of-12 from the field. In Game 2, when Bynum jogged back on defense and allowed an uncontested shot, Jackson was so perplexed he called timeout and eventually pulled Bynum and sat him on the bench for much of the game.

Jackson wants Bynum to be a clean-up guy, meaning he needs to rebound and contest shots. In 14 playoff games, he has 53 rebounds and 13 blocked shots. Those are decent numbers if your name is D.J. Mbenga. But we’re talking about Andrew Bynum. The Lakers have invested a lot of money in Bynum, who signed a $58 contract extension for four years last October and will count $14 million on the team’s salary cap next season. Whether it’s the MCL tear or lack of confidence, Bynum is not earning his paycheck.

Until he asserts himself in this year’s playoffs and becomes a bigger factor on offense and defense, Laker fans should start calling him Andrew Mbenga.

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Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum carries Playmate Nicole Narain on his shoulders. (PLAYBOY ENTERTAINMENT GROUP)

Your name is Andrew Bynum, starting center for the most popular NBA team in the world. You’re 21 years old and live in the heart of Hollywood. But because of a bum knee, you have some free time. So, if the Playboy Mansion sends you an invitation, would you turn it down?

Any male between the ages of 18 to 75 would be insane to say “no” to see Hugh and the Bunnies. Getting invited to the Mansion is as close you’re going to getting to heaven. Getting invited to the Mansion is almost as good as seeing the President at the White House.

Johnny Drama risked life and limb by stashing himself in the trunk of Turtle’s ride to avoid security check just so he could set foot in the Mansion and live out his fantasies in the Grotto.

However, despite having said all that, the picture of Bynum carrying Playmate Nicole Narain on his shoulders doesn’t exactly paint a good picture for the Los Angeles Lakers center. He claims he is furiously rehabbing his right knee, but the perception revealed by the photograph tells a different story. It gives the impression that Bynum would rather spend his day with Playmates than with his Lakers teammates. It gives the impression that Bynum is not taking his rehab seriously.

The Los Angeles Lakers will need a healthy Andrew Bynum for the NBA playoffs.

Blogger Arash Markazi wrote: If Bynum isn’t healthy enough to play, should he be able to live out his Playboy fantasy in the meantime? Maybe, but while he’s rehabbing his injury and the Lakers play shorthanded without him, perhaps it’d be wise for him to keep a low profile and sit out a couple of pajama parties. The grotto and Playmates will still be there. The Lakers can only hope the same can be said for Bynum come playoff time.

There is certainly nothing wrong with Bynum taking time off to be with Hef and the Playmates. However, there is a time and place for that. He could do this during the offseason when he’s not on company time and when Lakers are hoping and praying for his speedy return to the court. The timing of his Playboy trip, coupled with the not-so-flattering picture, puts Bynum in a very sticky situation.

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